@shcpcrsistcd
Just once, Tony would've loved to have the day to himself doing something that he wanted to do. Sure, saving the world could mess with your own busy schedule regardless of how you personally felt about it, but surely he could take a break every now and again without literally feeling the pain in his bones, right? Just a mojito on a Malibu beach front, or going straight into his lab to work on the next idea for an Iron Man suit that his imagination had been carving up. Naturally, he always had plenty of ideas lined up in that head of his, but those ideas were being partially interrupted today because he'd just finished giving the commencement speech to grad students over at MIT, and because the school was also literally paying him to be there today. Couldn't skip out on your alma mater on a handshake deal of goodwill and payment, or that'd look extremely bad for his image. So wheel on in, say a few words of encouragement that may or may not stick with these students for the rest of their lives, and get on out of Boston. Seriously, who the hell actually enjoyed being in Boston these days anyway? The Atlantic seafood was pretty delicious sure, but there was no chance in hell he was sticking around any one of those disgusting Fenway dogs they kept trying to sell you during a Red Sox game at Fenway Park. Not a chance. But naturally, leave it to Tony to find a reason to actually stick around for a change, that being one of the commencement students who'd been hanging around the auditorium an hour after the graduation was over. She was quite the looker, and probably had quite the brains on her too all things considered.
After adjusting the tie on his suit to ensure everything was clean and pristine, Tony made his way over to the woman and almost immediately their eyes made contact with one another, thrilling Tony enough internally to put forward a real smirk on his face. "Hey there, I'm sure my name needs no introduction given the Master of Ceremonies over there couldn't stop saying it at least 20 times during today's proceedings. But congrats on your big day; if you plan on sticking around this place, believe me when I say that there are probably ten things a lot more entertaining that you could be doing with your time. Lucky for you, all of them somehow miraculously involve me. How about that?"
everyone knew who tony stark was these days even if only by name and a general overview of his accomplishments over the years. especially in her time at MIT, marta cabrera had heard his name... many times considering he'd been a star pupil back in the day. his name had come up many times, even though their career paths had little in common. as she'd understood it from the news and what she'd picked up on around campus over the years, he was an engineer whereas she'd gone for medical school. MIT hadn't even necessarily been her first choice, but she'd chosen it... to stay close to her mother and sister, to stay close to where she'd come to think of as home for many years. it was a choice she hadn't regretted and she couldn't imagine having been anywhere else for her three years of med school. it was of surprise to no one that they'd brought back tony stark as the commencement speaker as it was far from the first time he'd returned to his alma mater for this or for other philanthropic reasons. marta had never been one to fawn over and be interested in things such as money and status, but he seemed to be an interesting person, even setting those things aside. completely different from her... that was for sure. still, she listened intently to his remarks during the ceremony, words that felt so profound and memorable now, but would soon be forgotten to the years the same way the speakers' words at her nursing school and high school graduations had as herself and her classmates would move on to their respective careers. soon enough... they'd only remember that he spoke, but not necessarily what he spoke.
she didn't expect him to seek her out after the ceremony, after farewells and hugs with her collegues, after more hugs and congratulatory words from her family and her friend, meg, and after what felt like hundreds of pictures her mother wanted taken of her with her very expensive degree declaring her new title. when she spoke, her accent made it evermore clear that she hadn't been born in the united states. "you know, i must have already forgotten your name..." she joked, with a light chuckle before holding out her hand to shake his. "it's good to meet you, mr. stark. and yes, pretty sure i heard your name a time or two even throughout my time at mit. thank you though, for the congratulations, that's very kind of you. i'd... actually been planning on it since boston's been my home since i was twelve and i accepted a residency offer at massachusetts general, but... well, i'm intrigued. what did you have in mind?"
